The official Blog for BikeWalkLee.org. BikeWalkLee is a community coalition raising public awareness and advocating for complete streets in Lee County, FL.

Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Moser Column: Estero Boulevard to get a long-awaited makeover

Dan Moser

Dan Moser's column this week focuses on the improvements coming on Estero Blvd. in Fort Myers Beach and the improvements needed on San Carlos Blvd. for the entire corridor to be bike/ped/transit-friendly.Florida Weekly Outdoor Section, May 14, 2014

Can
it really be true? After decades of hopes being dashed by design and
funding disagreements between the Town of Fort Myers Beach and Lee
County, work to rebuild Estero Boulevard — including many improvements
to benefit pedestrians and cyclists — appears ready to move forward.
Trolley pull-offs and better stormwater management are also a welcome
part of the plan.

The design isn’t all that everyone is happy with, primarily because
there’s not enough public right of way available in some segments,
specifically the busy area from Times Square to the Red Coconut curve.
But creativity, forward-thinking and compromise appear to have made the
difference in finally reaching agreement on a design concept that’s
feasible, both in terms of important features and cost. There are still
some hurdles to overcome because from here it’s all about the details as
engineering work moves towards the final stages.

Looking north from Old San Carlos Blvd.; there’s even more to squeeze in south of the town’s section of Estero Boulevard.

Having
been involved in the public process for the initial Estero Boulevard
plan as part of its original Comprehensive Plan when the town first
incorporated in the mid-’90s, I’m pleased that the focus on pedestrians,
bicyclists and transit users remains the top priority in this current
design, just as it was in the beginning. With as little as 50 feet of
right of way available in the most congested areas, being able to
accommodate all users is no small achievement. But by using roadway
markings such as “sharrows” to indicate it’s a true mixed use travel lane as well as drainage and water management techniques and
products that didn’t exist just a few years ago, Lee DOT, its
consultants, town officials and interested citizens have developed a
workable solution. Although they won’t be able to squeeze bike lanes in
those narrow segments without losing the middle turn lane — a change
that would create problems for emergency vehicles and left-turning
vehicles in that congested business district, thereby dooming such a
plan — the agreed-upon configuration is the best option, in my opinion.

Still to be decided, however, is what’s going to be done right at the
foot of the Matanzas Pass Bridge. The roadway up to near the existing
traffic signal belongs to FDOT, which is currently studying the
situation. How the very valuable adjacent private property will end up
being developed is another unknown, although it’s sure to have a
significant impact on the final plan. A roundabout and pedestrian
overpass from the private property to the beach are a couple of elements
that have been talked about for years but only time will tell what will
finally come about.

San Carlos Boulevard on the other side of the bridge is also in need
of reconfiguration in order to make it more bike/ped-friendly, especially
if the proposed mega-development on Main Street comes to pass. Further
north, on the mainland side of Little Carlos Island, the mish-mosh of
obnoxious roadway markings that have been adjusted, attempted to be
erased and re-painted, as well as flex-stakes that have been through the
same tweaking process over the years, is about as ugly as it gets and
isn’t exactly inviting to residents and visitors heading to Fort Myers
Beach. Bike lanes should and could be added all the way from the
Matanzas Pass Bridge to Summerlin Road, something FDOT has committed to
do.

But the town has no real say in those segments since its jurisdiction
ends at the Matanzas Pass Bridge. But the Fort Myers Beach Chamber of
Commerce, Lee Visitor and Convention Bureau, Fort Myers Beach Fire
District (which has to deal with the many crashes there) and others who
think there’s plenty of room for improvement on this
aesthetically-challenged segment of San Carlos Boulevard could work with
FDOT to get this done. Besides aesthetics, safety would be improved by
replacing the wide curb lanes with narrower ones and adding bike lanes;
this would reduce the propensity for drivers to travel well above the
posted speed limit whenever traffic is not backedup as well as taking
some bikes off the sidewalks. I have hope that FDOT will handle this and
the Times Square side of the bridge in good-faith cooperation with
everyone who needs to be at the table.
As usual, you’ll find more about this and other items of interest at
BikeWalkLee’s blog (bikewalklee.blogspot.com). Until next time, I’ll
look for you on the roads and trails.

— Dan Moser is
CyclingSavvy instructor/ trainer and program director for the Florida
Bicycle Association. He can be contacted at dan@floridabicycle.org or 334- 6417.

About BikeWalkLee Blog

This is the official Blog for BikeWalkLee.org. BikeWalkLee is a community coalition raising public awareness and advocating for complete streets in Lee County -- streets that are designed, built, operated and maintained for safe and convenient travel for all users: pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists, and transit riders of all ages and abilities.